Image: NASA / JPL-Caltech
Mars Sample Return
Mission Profile
| Launch date | TBD ~2030s |
|---|---|
| Launch vehicle | TBD (architecture under review) |
| Spacecraft | Sample Retrieval Lander + Mars Ascent Vehicle + ESA Earth Return Orbiter |
| Target | Mars |
| Type | Robotic |
| Cost | Estimated $8-11B prior to re-baseline; new target ~$5-7B |
| Partners | NASA JPL, ESA, Lockheed Martin (MAV), Northrop Grumman (MAV solid motors) |
Prime Contractors
Companies that built, launched, or operate this mission. Tickers link to their investor profile.
- NASA JPL
- Lockheed Martin
- Airbus Defence & Space
- Northrop Grumman
Overview
Mars Sample Return (MSR) is the joint NASA-ESA campaign designed to bring the rock cores Perseverance is collecting back to Earth for laboratory analysis — the first samples ever returned from another planet. The original architecture called for a NASA Sample Retrieval Lander to carry an ESA-built fetch rover to Jezero Crater, transfer Perseverance's sealed sample tubes into a Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV), and launch them into Mars orbit, where ESA's Earth Return Orbiter would rendezvous, capture the orbiting sample container, and ferry it back to Earth for landing in Utah. After cost growth pushed the program above $11B and pushed return to the late 2030s, NASA in April 2024 announced an architecture overhaul, soliciting industry studies for cheaper alternatives. As of April 2026 NASA is working with seven industry partners (including SpaceX, Blue Origin, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, AeroVironment, Aerojet Rocketdyne, and Quantum Space) plus the JPL in-house team, with a final architecture decision expected in 2026 and target return shifted to ~2035. Returned samples are scientifically uncopyable: they would let Earth-based laboratories search for biosignatures with instruments orders of magnitude more sensitive than anything that can fly to Mars, and could rewrite our understanding of whether Mars ever hosted life.
Key Milestones
2020-07-30
Perseverance launches with sample-caching system
2022-09-01
First sample tube deposited at Three Forks depot
2023-09-21
MSR Independent Review Board cites $8-11B cost concerns
2024-04-15
NASA opens MSR architecture re-baseline study
2026-12-01
Targeted MSR architecture decision (NASA AA Science)